Marry Me Bury Me
by TwistOfFaith-X
Summary: The Shield are the hottest rock band in the country. But Seth is far from happy. He wants out, and in his attempt to break free, he finds himself caught up in a whirlwind of celebrity and fame, and a long way from where he wanted to be. AU. Slash. Various pairings. Rare pairs. Rated M. Just in case.
1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note: ****This was my project for Camp NaNoWriMo this April, so while it has been edited, there may be some errors, and there's probably a lot that doesn't make sense, but it will all be clear by the end. So... erm... enjoy... **

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**Chapter**** One**

"Has there ever been a time when you just want the rest of the world to disappear? To not exist any more?" Seth curled his long legs up into the chair and pulled a blanket around his shoulders. Every inch of him ached, and all he could hear was the sound of the fans banging against the side of the bus to get his attention.

"No offence dude, but you chose this life." Dean slid into the seat opposite his band mate, tugging back the curtain that had blocked out the sight of scores of fans all clamouring for a look at the hottest rock band in the country.

"No I didn't. I chose to play my music in small bars to small crowds. You and him wanted all of this, not me." The younger man deliberately left his side of the curtain down, plugging in his headphones in an attempt to block out the noise coming from outside the bus.

"Leave Roman out of this. He only wants what's best for the band." Dean, barely able to contain his anger at the other man's sulking, reached across the small table, yanking the headphones away from Seth's ears harshly. "You just can't handle that he's more popular than you!"

"I don't give a shit about popularity, what I hate is that you both so readily threw Jimmy, Bo and Corey out of the band. You both readily shit on my friends to get what you two wanted." Seth snarled, snatching up his bag and storming down the bus. Dean and Roman knew exactly how to get under the younger man's skin, and more often than not they used it as a source of amusement for themselves and the select few team members that travelled with them.

Roman's return to the bus was coupled with the door to the sleeping quarters slamming shut as Seth locked himself away at the far end of the bus. The large Samoan sauntered onto the bus, a leggy blonde on each arm, the three of them laughing and giggling conspiratorially as they passed a vodka bottle between them.

"Deano! Where's the kid? The ladies want to meet him!" Roman's loud voice, no doubt fuelled by alcohol, filled the confined space of the bus as he looked around, expecting to find Seth slouched down on the sofa, sulking as he sipped at a soda. "Where did he go?"

"Locked himself in the bedroom in a sulk. What did you expect?" Dean grunted, smirking when he saw the two girls at his friend's side. "But we don't need him to party ladies, me and Roman, we're far more fun than Sethy could ever hope to be."

Even through the locked door, Seth could hear the laughter and giggling coming from the main area of the tour bus, the volume slowly rising as the four people out there consumed more and more alcohol. Behind him, out the back of the bus, he could hear the doors of the luggage hold being slammed shut, meaning the crew were done loading up and they would be on their way soon.

Within minutes of the luggage hold being closed up, the voice of the band's slimy manager, Paul Heyman, joined the chorus of voices in the front end of the bus, followed shortly by that of Heyman's other two clients, MMA fighter Brock Lesnar, and professional wrestler Phil Brooks. From the sound of things they were throwing some kind of party out there. Seth groaned, burying his head under his pillows and closing his eyes, turning up the music on his iPod to block out the noise from the other room.

After a couple of hours, the noise slowly began to quieten down, and Seth could only assume that the others were falling asleep one by one. As silence fell on the bus, with the only sound being the purring of the engine as the bus cruised down the freeway to the band's next destination, Brock's big MMA fight in New York city.

Just as Seth was settling in to get some proper sleep, the door crashed open and Dean staggered in, half holding up one of the blonde girls Roman had brought onto the bus. Walking passed Seth's bunk, Dean pulled hard on his hair.

"Get out. We need the room. You can sleep in the bathtub." Dean growled at Seth, dragging the covers off the younger man and poking him relentlessly in the arm until he rolled off the bunk and trudged off in the direction of the bathroom, dragging the blanket with him.

"Fine!" He mumbled, more to himself than to Dean and the girl, who by this point have already collapsed onto the bed, giggling and pulling Seth's band mate down on top of her. Throwing the bathroom door open, guessing that Roman had taken over the sofa, Seth flicked the dim light on, instantly regretting it when the light revealed the Samoan, already stark naked, fucking another blonde in the bathtub. "For fuck's sake!"

Hearing Seth's exclamation, Roman's head snapped up sharply, dark eyes glaring at the younger man. "Fuck off!" He bellowed, throwing the nearest item, Dean's extremely overpriced shower gel, at Seth. Keeping his eyes away from the girl only long enough to watch Seth backing out of the room, Roman snarled, instantly returning to fucking the girl beneath him the second the light clicked out and the door shut.

Tempted to go back into the bedroom, just to piss Dean off more than anything, Seth reached the door, hand on the handle ready to burst in, when the sounds of sex filled the bus. Hefting a heavy sigh, Dean getting laid was something he really, really didn't want to be subject to, again, Seth turned away from the door, traipsing into the main seating area of the bus. To his immense surprise, Paul, Brock and Phil were still awake, all of them settled down into chairs, flicking through books or magazines to pass the time. At least, Paul and Brock were reading, Phil was shuffling around attempting to clear away some of the mess the others had left behind in their desperation to get laid.

"I'll do that." Seth mumbled softly, dropping his blanket over an empty chair and reaching out to take the rubbish sack from Phil, frowning softly when the other man hesitated. "I don't mind, honest."

Phil pulled the bag out of Seth's reach, shaking his head. "You already do more than enough for those two louts. Get some sleep, I'll clean up."

"Oi! Don't you be talking about my boys like that Phillip! You're not impossible to replace you know." Paul barely glanced up, merely raising his eyebrows as he warned Phil. "Let the kid clean up if he's that desperate to. Not like he contributes much else to the team anyway."

"I said I'll do it Phil. Just... I dunno, get some sleep or something." Seth crossed the short distance between them and snatched the trash bag from the other man's hand. He knew Phil would likely ignore him and help, but still, it wasn't Phil's place to clean up after Seth's 'friends.'

Between the two of them it took less than thirty minutes to clean up the bottles and take out containers that had slowly been building up around the room over the past week or so, and by the time they were done Paul and Brock had crashed out in their chairs, sharing Seth's blanket.

"Want me to get you another blanket kid?" Phil glanced across at the younger man, who had practically fallen down into an empty seat, shifting around to get comfortable.

"No thanks. I probably won't get much sleep as it is." Seth offered up a small, tired smile by way of thanks as he curled himself into the chair and reached for the book that was resting on the table in front of him. "A Clash of Kings? This must be your's."

Phil settled into the chair facing Seth, half smiling as he watched the kid skim reading the blurb. "Yeah. It's something of an obsession. I've got the first one at my place in New York, if you wanted to borrow it..?"

"I dunno... I mean... I wouldn't trust someone else's stuff around those two.." Seth jerked his head in the direction of the back of the bus, indicating his bandmates. "Thanks for offering though."

"Why are you still here Seth? I mean, you obviously aren't happy, so, why stay?" Phil watched closely as Seth lowered the book, staring blankly out the window.

"I... I have to..." His voice dropped to a whisper, checking over his shoulder to make sure Paul and Brock were still asleep behind him. "Paul won't let me break my contract, says he'll ruin me if I walk away."

Without thinking, Phil reached across the table, catching Seth's hands in his own. "Let me help you. I can't make Paul change his mind about the contract, but I can try and make life more bearable for you." Seeing the younger man shake his head slightly, Phil lifted his hand, cupping Seth's chin and pulling his face around so that he could look him in the eyes properly. "You can't do this alone. You need someone here for you, just, please kid, let me help."

Seth nodded slowly, smiling weakly as Phil dropped his hands, scooping up the book and cracking the spine open. "Thank you."

"Wasn't that sweet Brock? They think they can team up against me?" Paul's weasely voice hissed behind Seth, his breath warm and sickly against the back of his neck. "Why don't we see how good of a team they really are?"

Brock smirked, cracking his knuckles as he hefted himself out of the chair, throwing the blanket at the two men sat at the table. Striding off down the bus in the direction of the driver, the fighter barely noticed Paul hurrying after him, rubbing his hands together with glee.

The next five minutes were tense and uncomfortable, and dragged by for so long that Seth found himself nervously glancing at his watch every thirty seconds or so until Phil grabbed his hand.

"Relax. Paul can't hurt either of us, not if he wants to have to answer questions from the press. And I'm right here, not going anywhere, remember that. Okay?" Phil refused to take his eyes away from Seth until the younger man nodded slowly.

Without warning the bus shuddered to a halt, and Paul burst back into the silent room, throwing Seth's bag at him roughly. "Off, both of you. You want out of this team, you got it." The older man pointed at the front of the door, where Brock was stood menacingly cracking his knuckles. "Go on, off my bus. You can make your own way home, the pair of you."

Without thinking anything through, Seth stood, making his way down the bus, Phil right behind him. As he drew level with Brock, Seth stopped suddenly, turning slowly, frowning when he saw Phil following.

"No! You should stay Phil. I don't want you to throw your career away because of me." As Phil started forward, making to push passed Seth, the younger man put his hand out, stopping him. "Don't. Wrestling is your life, and I refuse to let you give up what you love because I hate myself for not standing up to the others."

"I'm not giving anything up Seth, I'm walking away from a bullying manager so that I can find someone who is genuinely interested in helping me." Phil shoved passed the young musician, jumping down from the bus without a second thought. Until the bus doors hissed shut behind him and the vehicle pulled away.

"Stop! Go back and get him!" Seth screamed at Paul, throwing his bag as hard as he could at the fat little man. "You said we could both get off! Either let me off, or go back and get him!"

"You took too long. I told you to get off, he got off, you didn't." Paul smirked, slumping down into the chair he had previously been sleeping in.

"You didn't give me a chance to get off!" Seth started forward, ready to hit Heyman the second he got close enough. "Now go back! Get Phil! We'll both leave when we get to New York!"

"Too late. Phil's already left, and as for you, you're stuck here, with the band, with me, and with Brock, until your contract is up. Which is, if I remember correctly, isn't for another four years!" This time Seth launched himself at his manager, covering the distance with ease. And he would have managed to get to Paul had Brock not grabbed him at the last second, throwing the young man aside. "Deal with him would you? All this Diva behaviour is exhausting."

Brock grunted in reply, hoisting Seth back up to his feet and tossing him over his shoulder with a practised ease. The younger man groaned, only half conscious from the blow that had knocked him to the ground. Brock dumped Seth down into the equipment closet, slamming the door and locking it behind him.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter Two**

By the time Seth woke up fully, the rest of the bus was fully awake, and the bus had stopped at a service station to refuel and allow the band, Paul and Brock to get breakfast. Over the breakfast table, Paul filled Dean and Roman in on what had happened after the two of them had taken the women to bed the night before.

"Seth has lost it lads. Went nuts last night, attacked me, and lashed out at Brock when he stepped in to stop him. I think he's started taking again." Paul's phone buzzed in his pocket, and he glanced down quickly. "Your cab is here ladies." Flicking through his wallet, the manager passed one of the two women a pile of twenties to cover the taxi ride back into town.

Smiling graciously, the blondes gathered up their things and departed without so much as a backward glance, and the business side of Paul knew that the second they were home, they would be on the phone to the tabloids selling their stories about the night of passion they had shared with Dean and Roman, and no doubt one of them would be smart enough to work in something about Seth's 'breakdown' while they were at it, at least, he hoped they had the brains to remember that part of their deal.

"Where's Phil?" Dean broke the silence that had fallen over the group in the few minutes following the women's departure. "He was on the bus last night when we went to bed."

"Phil's at the hospital getting checked out. He was the one that took the brunt of Seth's attack last night. I had Kevin pick him up in the other bus and take him back into the last town to get sorted." At least, that was all these two needed to know. It only took one sneaky glance at the band members to see that they were buying it, after all, Seth had been moody and sulky ever since they had set out on this press tour, even more so after they had passed through Nashville. "What do you two what to do about Seth, I mean, he's your friend, so you two should really decide."

Dean and Roman looked a each other blankly, they had guessed Seth would have difficulty adjusting to not having his friends in the band any more, but neither of them had predicted that he would have a compete mental breakdown.

"I... uh... I'll talk to him." Dean mumbled. He was the closest to Seth out of them all, after all, he had been one of the original band members before Roman had joined and talked him into ditching the others in order to get a contract. "Where is he?"

"Brock had to lock him in the equipment closet for everyone's safety. He'll still be in there sleeping off his anger." Paul signalled to the waitress for another coffee as Dean stood up.

"I'll go see if he's awake, get this done with before we set out again." Roman opened his mouth to stop him, but Paul shushed the big man, letting Dean go without further discussion.

"Leave this to Dean, he'll make the kid see sense."

Seth sat on the floor of the closet, arms folded across his chest, nursing the cuts and splinters that he had caused across the back of his knuckles in his fight to break down the door. Hearing the door unlock, he scowled childishly, expecting to see Paul or Brock when the door finally opened. Upon seeing Dean, the scowl relaxed a shade, and Seth allowed himself to be pulled to his feet.

"You took your time! I've been locked in here all night." Seth shoved passed his band mate, moving on into the bedroom. "I'm out of here. Paul kicked Phil off the bus last night, I'm going to find him."

"Paul let Phil of the bus so that he could go to hospital. You beat him up really badly Seth." Dean caught the younger man's arm, pulling him round to face him. "Why did you attack them Seth? Are you on drugs again? You know what happened last time!"

"I didn't attack anyone. Except Paul after he threw Phil off the bus, but I never hit him, Brock threw me in the closet and locked the door before I could." Seth yanked his arm away, throwing his things into his bag. "And no, I'm not on drugs, why would I be?"

"Because I know you were before. When we were in Nashville, and ever since we passed through there on the tour you've been acting strange, like you were before." As fast as Seth was packing the bag, Dean was unpacking it, unwilling to let Seth off the bus in this state. "Don't lie to me kid, I've seen the bruises on Paul, and he showed us photos of Phil. You really messed them up Seth."

"I didn't touch them!" Seth yelled, losing his patience with the man he had always considered to be his friend. "I swear!" He sunk down onto the bed, head dropping into his hands. "I just want to find Phil and go home. Please!"

"Just finish this tour, then you can have a break and go home for a while." Dean perched awkwardly on the bed next to him, gently rubbing his back in what he hoped was a comforting motion. "Does that sound fair?"

Seth nodded, falling back to lie on the bed, eyes closing slowly. "How long till we get to New York?"

"A couple more hours. Get some sleep, I'll pick you up some food for when we get there." Dean backed out of the room slowly, clicking the door shut carefully as he left.

Moving back into the main area of the bus, he found Paul, Brock and Roman waiting expectantly for him. "He wants to go back to Nashville. I've got him to agree to stay for the rest of the tour. But we need to let him go back for a month at least, otherwise this meltdown won't be the last."

Paul nodded, tapping something into his phone and jotting down Dean's suggestion in his diary. "Okay, month off, I can work with that. Maybe we can send a camera crew with him, make a Youtube series documenting his homecoming, interview his friends, have him play a show at that little bar you all started in."

"No Paul, he needs a complete break. No cameras, no shows, no Youtube. Just him, sleeping, relaxing, away from this!" Dean sighed heavily, slumping down in the nearest empty seat as their manager snatched up his phone as it buzzed insistently, practically running to shut himself up front with the driver. "I hate it when he ignores me."

"Great, just perfect!" Paul stormed back into the room, making a beeline for the door to the sleeping quarters. "I'm going to kill him!"

"Seth's trying to get some sleep! Leave him to it!" Dean stepped out into the corridor, blocking Paul's passage. "What's wrong?"

"One of those bimbos you two hooked up with last night, heard Seth's outburst, and has gone to TMZ, told them he's mentally unstable. And possibly on something!" Paul made to shove Dean aside, but found himself faced with Roman as well. "They're running the story, it's ready to post once they've gotten a statement from you lot. As a band."

Roman turned sharply, barging into the bedroom and hauling Seth up and out of his bunk. "Get up! We've got damage control to do thanks to you!" Hoisting him up and practically frog marching him out to the seated area, Roman held him hand out expectantly for Paul's laptop. "Dean, find the kid a clean t-shirt, one of the merch shirts if there's one around. Paul, can you set up a Skype interview with whoever is running this story? Within the next hour?"

Paul nodded and disappeared on his cell, and Dean went off in search of a shirt for Seth, who simply sat at the table, trapped in by Roman, confused as to what was going on. TMZ? Skype interviews? He felt more than a little out of the loop, and not for the first time since this tour had started.

"What's going on? Did something happen?" Seth murmured softly, his hair falling to cover his eyes.

"TMZ is running a story about your drug fuelled rampage last night. One of the girls heard you screaming and yelling like a madman, and has sold you out to TMZ." Roman snarked at the smaller man, roughly dragging Seth's hair back from his face and tying it up. "And now it's up to the rest of us to clean up your messes, again."

"I haven't taken anything. I'll do a drug test to prove it." Seth frowned, why was everyone convinced he was on something? "As soon as we get to New York, get me to a hospital, or a lab, and I'll do a test. To prove to all of you that I'm clean."

"The girl has pictures of Paul and Phil, the damage you did to them! How are we supposed to explain that away huh?" Roman snapped sharply at his band mate, barely paying attention to Dean throwing a clean shirt down on the table in front of them.

"This is all I could find, get changed." Dean shoved himself onto the edge of Roman's chair, making sure he would be in the view of the web cam when they did the interview. Both of the older men turned their attention away from Seth as he changed his shirt, instead focusing their attentions on Paul as he returned to the room.

"You've got a fifteen minute interview, the reporter will call you in ten minutes. Roman, I suggest you do most of the talking. Find some way to dig Seth out of the shit hole he's created." Paul sat himself opposite the band, making notes on a sheet of paper. "Make sure Seth apologises for what happened, and reassure the reporter that he's checking into an unnamed rehab facility as soon as the tour is done."

"I'm not going to rehab!" Seth blurted out, cutting Paul off unexpectedly. "I haven't taken anything, I never attacked you, or Phil. Ask Phil, he'll vouch for me."

"That's the problem though Seth, you are going to rehab, and you did attack me. Brock saw you, and the bus has CCTV, imagine if the footage got out!" Paul smiled menacingly for a second, before turning his attention back to Roman. "Phil has made a statement from his hospital bed. Saying that he isn't pressing charges against Seth, but that he wants to distance himself from the band for a while."

Roman nodded, he knew what would be best to include and leave out, as long as Seth apologises for scaring the girl, and tells the reporter he's going to rehab, anything else will just be filler in the article.

Paul is halfway through a few other points to include when the computer pings, indicating an incoming call. Roman hits answer, and finds himself face to face with Stephanie McMahon, lead reporter for TMZ.

"Ms McMahon. Thank you for giving Seth the chance to apologise and explain his actions."

"My pleasure Roman, although I have to say, I was surprised when I took the call on this one. Seth Rollins seems like the last person in the music business to have a drugs problem."

"That's the thing with drugs, anyone can fall prey to them in a moment of weakness." Roman slid a sheet of paper across to Seth as he spoke, showing the younger man a written out statement and indicating that he was to read only what was written down in front of him "I'll pass you over to Seth now, he has rather a lot to say, and I feel like this would be better coming from him."

"Absolutely Roman. And well done on being so supportive of your friend." Stephanie grinned, graciously turning her attention to Seth, who was more than a little nervous about the fact that he was being forced to confess to a problem that he didn't have any more. "Seth, it's a shame we have to speak under these circumstances. I had always hoped to be the one to interview you about a Grammy win."

Seth laughed uneasily, biting nervously on his fingernails. "I know. And I also know I need to apologise for what happened last night. The last thing I wanted was to scare anyone. I didn't even realise that the others could hear me."

"Why don't we start with why you took the drugs?"

"I was nervous, before the show. I'm always nervous, nothing was helping calm me down, and drugs had worked in the past. I took enough to get me through the show, but I didn't realise the beer would prolong the effects." As he spoke, Seth felt his cheeks flush with shame, his parents would see this, they would hate him for this, no matter how much he tried to explain.

"You've taken drugs in the past?"

He nodded, curling his hands into tight fists as he spoke again. "When I was just starting out, with my first band. It was just for fun, the drugs, the music, everything. We were just kids having fun. Then the contract happened, the others left, I didn't really know how else to cope."

"So the drug use has been an on going problem for you?"

"On and off. There are times when I can cope, and other times where I'm so dependent that I can barely get out of bed with out needing something."

"Your manager, Paul, has told me you're going into rehab as soon as the tour is done. Is this something you want, or are the band forcing you in there?"

"I want this, I need this. Being clean is something that I've wanted for a long time, but not enough to do anything about it. I always made excuses, I was too busy working on the album, too busy touring, too busy doing press. But after... after what I did last night, getting clean is the only concern I have now."

"But why after the tour? Surely your priority should be making sure you don't hurt anyone else? Not promoting your album and Brock Lesnar's next fight?"

Seth grimaced slightly at the mention of the fight, he had tried to forget about having to go to that when they got to New York. "Paul and the guys wanted me to go in sooner, but we only have New York left on the schedule, and that's only for Brock's fight and a talk show. I mean, I've delayed this for over two years now, what harm is twenty four more hours going to do?"

"So what you're telling is that, after Brock's fight tonight, and The Shield's appearance on Good Morning USA tomorrow morning, you are driving straight to rehab?"

"That's right. The second we leave the studio tomorrow, Paul and I are getting on a plane and heading directly to the rehab facility. The band has promised to continue with their leg of the press tour while I'm recovering."

"And when you're done with your treatment?"

"I'll be taking some personal time. A few months away from the spotlight until I'm completely sure that I can handle the pressure."

"Thank you Seth." Stephanie smiled warmly at him, turning her attention back to Roman and Dean. "Boys, you must be proud of Seth for taking the decision to straighten himself out before he becomes any more of a danger to you all."

"We are. Immensely proud of him. We just wish he had come to us sooner about his problem. Seth's like a brother to us, we only want what's best for him." Dean simpered at the camera, while Roman draped a supportive arm around Seth's shoulder.

"Exactly. Without Seth this band would be nothing. The sooner he gets himself to rehab the better. We need our bassist alive and well." Roman smiled at Stephanie.

"Thank you guys, I think I have everything I need. If I come across anything I've missed before the story goes up I'll give Paul a ring." Before anyone could say anything in reply, the screen went dark.

"Glad to see you can do something right at least." Roman snapped at Seth moving his arm quickly, as though even touching Seth would infect him with something. Dean had already gone from the table, busy sorting through his things ready to get off and into a hotel in New York.

Hardly able to bare Seth's presence for much longer, Roman slid away from the younger man, barely blinking as Seth darted for the bedroom again. "Should someone go with him? In case he tries to take something?" Roman dead panned. He knew as well as Paul and Brock did that Seth wasn't on anything. But he also knew Dean didn't know that, and that it was vital to keep Dean on their side in all of this.

"He'll be fine. He was trying to sleep before you hauled him out to do that interview." Dean barely looked up as he spoke, too lost in stuffing all his sheet music and notebooks into his bag.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter Three**

In the sleeping quarters, Seth was staring at his phone, watching the incoming call flash before his eyes. He knew he should answer and hear what Phil had to say about what had happened, but he also didn't think he wanted to know. For once, Seth was perfectly happy being in the dark about Phil's side of things.

Three missed calls later, and seconds away from the fourth call going unanswered, he buckled and hit the answer button. "Phil! What do you want?"

"I... uh... Paul phoned. Told me about the story. I'm sorry." Phil sounded genuinely upset by Seth's predicament, almost as though he was hurting for the other man. "I know you didn't take anything last night!"

"Then why does Paul have a statement from you saying I did? And that I attacked you and put you in hospital?" Seth snapped down the phone, hands shaking as he resisted the urge to disconnect the call.

"I didn't... I never gave him that statement. I haven't spoken to Paul since last night, not until he called me half an hour ago and told me about the story that's about to go up on TMZ."

"He's told the press that I attacked you and him while I was high! Apparently he has pictures and hospital reports for you." Seth closed his eyes, forcing himself to blink back tears. "I'm fucked! The story is going live soon, everyone will have seen it by the time we get to New York, and they're still making me go to the fight, and do the interview tomorrow morning."

"Slip away!"

"What? I'm pretty sure they'd notice if I just didn't show!"

"I'll wait for you, when you get off the bus in New York, we'll disappear, like we were supposed to last night. When we get somewhere safe, just tweet, or blog that you decided to check into rehab early, and you hope the fans understand."

"I... this seems kinda risky, if I get caught, well, Paul really will destroy me." Seth forced himself to laugh. "But... uh... yeah, I'm in. Just please, don't take me anywhere they'll find me!"

"I know the perfect place we can go to hide. Don't worry, you'll be perfectly safe with me." Phil laughed easily, his laugh relaxing Seth a little more. "Listen, I'll let you go, look out for me when you get there. See you soon."

"See you soon." Seth held the phone to his ear for a while after Phil hung up the call, his mind racing as he tried to piece together what had happened in the past 18 or so hours.

It was early afternoon by the time the tour bus arrived in New York city, and Seth had managed to catch a couple of hours sleep before being woke up by Dean. As the bus pulled up in front of the New York hotel Paul had booked for the group, Seth found himself being swept along by three members of the crew. This wasn't supposed to happen, he was always just left to his own devices and take his own things into the hotel, why were they now paying attention to him?

"Uh... wait... I left my iPod on the bus." He froze, patting down his pockets in fake panic. "I'll go get it. Meet you inside." Seth turned away from the three men, sighing heavily when he felt a too tight grip on his arm.

"Someone will bring it in to you. I'm sure you can last ten minutes without it." The taller of the three men, Seth thought his name was Wade, spun him back to face them. "Go on, get inside."

For a second Seth considered attempting to make a run for it, but a sharp cough from behind him shot that idea from him mind pretty quickly, and, with a quick glance around in search of any place that Phil might possibly be lingering, let the crew members hustle him in the direction of the hotel lobby.

Rounding the corner from the parking lot, Seth found the side walk between the corner and the hotel lobby blocked by a barricade of photographers and reporters. All it took was for one of the men nearest Seth to recognise him, and the cameras started flashing within seconds. The crew members walking with Seth surrounded him instantly, almost as though they had practised the manoeuvre before.

"Husky, Tarver, get him inside. Now!" Wade barked at the two men, shoving Seth forwards as the two men hurried after him while Wade strode ahead, clearing the side walk to allowed them passage to the hotel.

Seth practically ran the short distance to the safety of the hotel, pulling his hat lower over his eyes. Paul was going to go mad if any of this found it's way onto the internet before Brock's fight. After all, Brock was the number one client, and God forbid if anyone dared to overshadow him.

"How did they know we would be here?" Seth mumbled slightly as he darted inside, not speaking to anyone in particular really, which is why the sudden response startled him.

"It's the press, they have a way of finding things out." The musician spun sharply, smiling as he saw Phil striding across the lobby from the direction of the service entrance. "You should have come in the back way. There was no one round there."

"Those guys brought me in the front way!" Seth nodded his head in the direction of the lingering crew members, all of whom looked to be locked into a deep, intense conversation. "What are you doing here? I thought you were stealing me off the street when I got off the bus?"

"Saw you couldn't get away. Plus, I still have my free ticket to this fight tonight, would be a shame to let that go to waste." Phil grinned smugly, waving mockingly at Paul as the short man strutted into the hotel like he owned the place. "And, me being here will drive him insane slowly."

"I thought you were getting me out of here, away from him?" Seth lowered his voice, glancing over his shoulder to make sure his manager was nowhere close enough to overhear their conversation.

"I will, tonight, after the fight. Or even during it if we can slip away." Phil winked conspiratorially. He had a plan, a perfect plan. "Just, whatever happens now, go with it. Okay?"

Seth nodded slowly, forcing a smile. He trusted Phil to get him out of this, hell, Phil was the only person in this circus that he trusted at all. "Sure. I trust you with this. And thanks."

Biting his lip ring gently, the wrestler nodded, cracking his knuckles deftly as he pulled his hand into a tight fist. "Sorry." He mumbled, drawing back his arm and pausing for a split second before letting the punch fly, knocking Seth to the floor. "Stay the fuck away from me! Pervert!"

Seth recoiled, pulling his hands up to cover his face the second he saw what Phil was planning on doing. Only he raised his hands too late, and the other man's fist caught him square on the jaw, knocking him off balance and sending him crashing to the ground, holding his face.

"Phil!" Paul and the security team were on the other man in second, fussing around him and bundling him away from the reception, no doubt up to the rooms Paul had his assistant book for them. "What the hell? You can't just go around hitting people like that. Not where the press can see at least."

"That kid drives me mad! First he attacks me, then he hits on me! What kind of weirdo does that?" Phil ranted at his manager, knowing full well that Paul knew it wasn't Seth who had blackened his eyes and split his lip. "I want him gone Paul, or at least distracted so he's away from me!"

"I've got it covered Phil. Just. Stay outta the way okay? And if this ends up the top story on TMZ I'll get you a raise." Paul smirked, backing out of the suite he had booked the wrestler into for the next four nights.


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter Four**

Down in the lobby Seth was still picking himself up, his head buzzing slightly from the force of the punch. The flurry of people around him only served to make the brewing headache worse, and he simply collapsed down into the closest chair he could find, the second he got to his feet.

"Hey kid. How's the head?" An unfamiliar voice in the chair beside him peaked Seth's interest, and he turned his head slightly to see who was there, eyes falling half shut when he found himself face to face with the heir to the Riley Hotels fortune. "That was some spill you took. Let me get a doctor to have a look at you."

Seth watched, slightly bemused as the other man pulled out a cell phone and dialled for the hotel doctor to come up to the lobby. The guy took him gently by the arm, helping him to his feet and guided the musician carefully across to the elevators.

"Where we going?" Seth mumbled, rubbing his hand across his eyes in a lame attempt to clear his head, and ease the blurriness of his vision a shade. "I need to find my band mates."

"I told the doctor to come up to my suite. The last thing we need is your check up being on the front page of US Weekly." The heir moved closer to Seth, slipping a rather large arm around his slender waist. "I'm Alex by the way, Alex Riley."

"Seth Rollins." He mumbled again, letting his head fall to rest lightly on the larger man's shoulder. "Thanks. I hate the press. They keep harassing me. Worse than the others."

The elevator pinged, and Alex helped Seth out and down the short corridor to his rooms. "This is us. Let's get you comfortable and ready for the doctor."

By this time Seth was so disorientated that all he could do was nod as Alex practically carried him into the affluent room and settled him on the sofa, fussing around and magicking up a glass of water, a blanket and some pillows.

On the floor below Alex's suite, Dean and Roman were stretched out across the two large sofas that dominated the sitting room of their own suite, waiting for Paul to bring Seth up. They had seen the altercation between Phil and their band mate down in the lobby, and had been reassured by their manager that he would wait with Seth while the doctor checked the younger man out.

"Seems like Seth doesn't want our help." Paul closed the door silently behind him, making himself at home in the room.

"Is he alight? After hitting his head I mean! What did the doctor say?" Dean babbled slightly as he reached for the glass of water on the table in front of him.

"I guess he's alright, shame he didn't stick around long enough to see a doctor though." Paul snarked slightly, kicking his shoes off and resting his feet on the table. "Last I saw Alex Riley was bundling him into an elevator."

"Alex Riley? That spoilt heir? What does he want with Seth?" Roman scoffed, tapping at his cell phone absent mindedly.

"Drugs most like. Addicts always know how to find one another." Paul waved off the conversation at that point, reaching for the phone to order in room service. "Plan for tonight gents, arrive at the arena early enough to beat the fans, but not early enough that the press aren't ready for us. Front row seats, naturally, plenty of screen time for you all. Just keep Seth sober, and clean."

"Yes boss." Roman laughed, tossing his phone aside and grabbing the room service menu. "I'm guessing the label will be picking up the tab?"

"Order what you want. I've got to check on Phil and Brock, and find Seth before tonight." Paul slipped his shoes back on, and headed for the door, leaving the phone off the hook ready for Dean and Roman to order.

Seth groaned softly as he woke, blinking slowly as he attempted to pull himself up into a sitting position. The room around him was strange, and his head and neck ached from the awkward position he had slept in. Listening intently, he could hear someone moving around in the bathroom, clearly attempting to be as quiet as they could.

"Hello? How's there?" Seth called out to the mystery person. "Where am I?"

Alex poked his head around the bathroom door, grinning broadly when he saw Seth was awake and sitting up. "Oh good, you're awake. I was starting to think the painkillers were too strong."

"How long was I asleep? I've got a fight to get to." Seth blathered slightly, blinking rapidly once again in an attempt to clear his vision and get a proper look at the man now sitting in the chair opposite him. "Sorry, I don't remember a lot after Phil smacked me in the face."

"I didn't think you would. And don't panic, the fight's not for another few hours yet." Alex laughed softly, holding out a glass of water and some mild painkillers, which Seth took gratefully. "I saw him hit you, watched your manager take his side and walk away. So I did the right thing and helped you. Had my doctor take a look at you, and let you sleep."

"Thanks. What do I owe you? For the doctor?" Seth mumbled softly, cheeks blushing slightly at the thought of having to be rescued and helped like a damsel in distress.

"Don't worry about it. I can afford one little check up." Alex leant in a little closer, brushing a loose strand of hair from Seth's face. "I'm not letting you go back to Paul Heyman. He'll ruin you, more than he already has done with that stupid drugs stunt."

"What? You can't keep me hostage you know? I'm pretty sure people will notice." Seth pulled back slightly as Alex leant in, almost unnerved by the sudden close proximity of the other man. "And what do you mean, Paul will ruin me?"

"It's what he does. Brock and Phil are his pet projects, but every so often he takes on other clients. Singers, actors, bands." Sensing the younger man's discomfort, Alex settled back in the chair lazily, dragging his laptop onto the table in front of him. " Then he pulls someone's life apart, slowly but surely. Think about it Seth. When was the last time you spoke to your friends back home? Your parents? When was the last time you got to decide what you did?"

Seth lowered his eyes slowly, chewing on his bottom lip as he mulled over Alex's words. The older man was right, Paul had all but cut him off from his friends, made out like it was Seth's idea to boot them from the group, and he hadn't spoken to his parents since The Shield had signed their contract with Paul's label. "But if I pull out of the contract, he'll make it worse. And he'll take it out on Phil, and the others."

"No he won't. Phil is just as much to blame for some of your problems as Paul is. And the others already have your replacement lined up. Why do you think Paul is pushing for you to go into rehab?" As Alex spoke he was tapping away at his laptop, pulling up a few choice news stories about some of Paul's previous clients. "Here, take a look at some of these."

Seth took the laptop, frowning softly as he read over some of the stories that had been major news over the past few years. Drugs arrests, drink driving, suicide attempts, thefts, all ending in a major, public breakdown and the person in question leaving their industry, and the public eye, almost indefinitely. "So... these were all Paul's guys? And they just... gave up?"

"Yep! They all played the game Paul's way, and they all failed. Ended up with nothing." Alex smiled sadly, taking the computer back and shutting it down. He had learned the hard way about the games that Paul Heyman played with his clients, knew that every single one of them was third, or fourth best after Phil, Brock, and even Paul himself. "I lost my little sister to Paul and his games. She didn't even try to get away from him."

"What happened to her?" Seth knew better than to pry, but Alex seemed so sad, and so willing to help, that it almost seemed wrong not to want to help him in return.

"Paul pushed her band up to the top of the charts, they were known all over the world, and then Paul decided Eve was wrong for the group, not what they needed to succeed, so he started to push her out." The older man paused, taking a long, deep swig from his own glass of water. "Started by spreading rumours of a drugs problem, then alcoholism, and finally, a sex tape. She killed herself not long after, couldn't live with the shame."

Without thinking Seth moved across the room, squeezing in beside Alex and wrapping his arms around his shoulders. "I'm so sorry."

"You weren't to know." Alex's voice was muffled from where he buried his head in Seth's shoulder, hugging into him close. "I just want to stop Paul Heyman from destroying anyone else."

"Let me help you. If Paul really is trying to ruin my life, then maybe we can beat him. Together."

"Really? You think we can?"

"Would you have told me all of this if you thought otherwise?" Seth laughed softly, untangling himself from Alex's embrace as the older man laughed as well.

"Got any ideas where to start then?" Alex smiled softly, wiping his eyes and straightening out his shirt.

"Something." Seth pulled the laptop back to them, reopening the files from before. "Look at this, everyone that Paul targeting amongst his clients, they all either quit the business and disappeared, or, well, you know..."

"So..?" Alex frowned, not quite catching on to what Seth was talking about. "What use is that?"

"So Paul clearly wants these guys to disappear. Which means the last thing I should do, is disappear from the public eye." With a triumphant grin, Seth looked back at Alex, waiting for the other man to catch on.

"That's genius. So, what, just hang around, keep going with your music, set out on your own? Keep popping up where ever the paps are?"

"Well... I'm not exactly opposed to a very public romance. I mean... if you know of anyone who is willing to spend time with me in a relationshipy way..." Seth mumbled softly, trailing off slowly.

"I guess I could... I mean... paps are always following me around..."


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter Five**

**Paul was livid, pacing back and forth across the lobby of the hotel frantically, cell phone pressed to his ear as he tried to get hold of Seth for the eighth time in the last hour. They were due to leave for Brock's fight in two minutes and no one had seen the younger man since Phil had punched him earlier on that afternoon. **

Outside in the streets, the press were suddenly whipped up into a frenzy, clamouring and shouting as their cameras flashed. The doormen yanked the doors open as fast as they could, hurrying the incoming people inside.

"Where the fuck have you been?" Roman bellowed when he spotted Seth and Alex strolling casually into the hotel, arm in arm and apparently oblivious to the media storm they had just created outside. "We're leaving in two fucking minutes."

"We popped out for food. Must have lost track of time." Alex laughed, wrapping an arm firmly around Seth's waist and pulling him closer. "Shall we get going then?"

"The car's waiting out the back for us. Nice to see you again Riley, Seth let's get moving." Paul started trying to hustle the band, and Brock towards the service exit, but froze when he saw Alex and Seth turning back towards the front doors. "Seth. Our car is this way."

"Right. Okay then. Well our limo is waiting out front, and we don't need to be at the arena for another quarter of an hour, so we'll see you there." Seth grinned, pulling his sunglasses down over his eyes as the two men headed back out into the early evening.

"What the Hell does he think he's playing at?" Paul raged at the three men who were waiting expectantly. Turning sharply, the rather portly man made to follow Alex and Seth, intending to drag Seth out to their car if he had to. And he probably would have succeeded had Brock not held him back.

"Leave them to it. Kid's just acting out. He'll get over it." The large man glowered at the couple posing for the press. That should be his attention. Tonight was his night, and that brat was stealing away his limelight. "I'm gunna be late, let's just get outta here." The fighter was gone before anyone could get another word in, and Dean and Roman merely followed after the bigger man.

Sliding into the limo that had waited for them, Seth couldn't help but laugh. For the first time in the 18 months since the band had signed their contract with Paul Heyman, he had stood up for himself and done what he wanted. And it felt amazing.

"I can't believe I just did that." He spoke to no one in particular, not even aware of anyone else in the limo besides himself and Alex. Somewhere along the course of the afternoon several of Alex's friends had joined them, but names and faces had blurred into one, and the only thing Seth currently knew for certain was that Alex hadn't let him go once.

"I can." Alex slid into the seat beside him, slamming the door shut and draping his arm lazily around Seth's shoulders. "And better yet, we're the headline story on every gossip site on the internet."

Seth laughed, reaching for his phone to check for himself. He was halfway through one article, which was accompanied by a very nice picture of the two of them sharing an ice cream cone in Central Park, when the phone buzzed with an incoming call.

"What do you want Phil?" The musician snapped, still rather bitter about the punch from earlier.

"A thank you would be nice."

"For what, giving me concussion?"

"For sending you Alex. He's a smart man, and a good friend of mine. I asked him to help me help you. Stick with him, and I'll see you at the after party." Phil rang off without explaining further, and Seth merely stared at his phone in confusion for a few seconds.

"I'm guessing Phil told you he sent me? Don't worry, I asked him to pass my number on to you a few months ago." Alex gently slid the phone from Seth's hand and locked it in the safe with his own. "You won't be needing that tonight. Here." Seth looked down, turning over the small phone Alex had given his to replace his own. "It's all set up for your Twitter account, but I'm the only one with the number, so Paul and the others can't call to check up on you and ruin your fun."

"So... what's the plan then? I mean, assuming you have a plan?" Seth laughed softly, Alex really had thought of everything.

"We drop this lot off at the nearest nightclub, and then we go and watch Brock's fight. From my sky box." Alex pressed the buzzer beside him, calling through to tell the driver to pull over. The car pulled to a smooth stop and the door swung open, his friends clambering out and shouting goodbyes as they disappeared into the club. "We hit up the after party, annoy the living Hell out of Paul, and then we disappear for a few weeks. I'm thinking Havana, or Mexico City."

"Why do we disappear?" Seth reached into his pocket and pulled out a small eye-liner pencil, using the reflection of the window to circle his eyes.

"You promised to go into rehab, and Paul had no intention of letting you go. We need to disappear so that you can pretend to be in cleaning up your act."

"Phil was right, you are very clever." Seth grinned as Alex wrapped both arms around him, kissing the nape of his neck gently. "Got a hair tie anywhere? I hate wearing my hair down."

"Can you cope for tonight? I mean, you are still playing the wild child rock God for a few more hours." The heir stroked his fingers through Seth's locks, carefully untangling the blonde from the brown. "I'll buy you all the hair ties you want as soon as we get up tomorrow."

"I can cope if you take me to Jamaica for my rehab." the musician smiled softly, turning his head to plant a soft kiss on the top of Alex's head.

"We're here. You ready for this?" Alex pulled back, adjusting his shirt and brushing down his hair with his hand.

"As I'll ever be." Seth grinned, ruffling his hair up so that it fell neatly into his face, and tossed his sunglasses aside. "Let's go show up the main event."

The door was pulled open, and Alex reached across for Seth's hand, pausing to help the younger man out of the limo and into the blinding flashes of the cameras. Seth froze for a split second, half wishing he had kept his sunglasses on.

The photographers and cameramen started to call out to them, shouting for attention and photographs, something which Alex was always ready to give, and Seth was ready to learn how to give freely.

Keeping a firm grip on Seth, Alex made his way to the door slowly, pausing every few steps to pose for photographs. Seth quickly fell into the same pattern, wrapping an arm around Alex's waist and occasionally reaching up to fondle his hair.

"As the door drew closer, Alex leant down, whispering softly to Seth. "There's a reporter inside for E! AJ, I called earlier, told her we would be here. She wants to do a quick interview, just follow my lead and we'll be all over the news pages before the fight has even begun."

Seth nodded, taking the opportunity to press a quick kiss to Alex's lips before the older man straightened up and grinned. Interviews he could handle, and he thought he had met AJ in the past, just before the first single was released. She was a sweet girl, if it was the same girl as before.

Security guards opened the doors for them, and the two man sauntered in, pausing to take for a short breather before the pre- arranged 'surprise' interview.

"I'm here at the Skyline arena for tonight's big MMA fight between Brock Lesnar and David Bautista, and the celebs are out in force. Alex! Seth! Can I get a few words? It's for E!"

"Not a problem AJ. You know I always have time for you." Alex beamed at the young woman, looping his arm casually around Seth's shoulder as the smaller man tucked neatly into his side. "What can we do for you?"

"We've all seen the pictures of you from this afternoon Alex. I think you know what you can do for me." AJ grinned lasciviously, practically cooing over the sight before her, sure the pictures had looked cute and fluffy, but these two were oozing cute right here in front of her. "How long have the two of you been hiding all this away from us?"

"Honestly? A couple of months now." Seth smiled charmingly at her, looking at Alex with what he hoped would pass for love, or at least lust. "But I've had a tough time lately, and well, you know how these things happen. We just forgot to be careful today."

The trio laughed loudly, and Alex let his fingers absently play with the ends of Seth's hair. "Today was the first time we had seen each other in weeks. We just couldn't control ourselves."

"Well, I'm glad you two stopped being so careful. You really are an adorable couple, we wish you all the best. Thank you gentlemen." AJ bowed her head in thanks, grinning as the two men said their goodbyes and disappeared into the crowd.

As they crossed the main lobby to the bar, several fans of The Shield, and of Alex, stopped the couple, asking for pictures and autographs, which, for the first time several long months, Seth found himself more than happy to give. Right up until he found himself face to face with Paul, Dean, Roman and Phil, with Alex away chatting a some old friends of his.

"You know he doesn't actually give a shit about you right? He's using you for the publicity." Roman sneered at his band mate, lips curling in disgust.

"Roman leave it." Dean all but stepped in between the two men, torn between being happy for Seth, and backing up Roman, who he thought was right in all of this. "Just leave it yeah? As long as it doesn't affect the band, Seth can do what he wants."

"Exactly. Seth has someone who is looking out for him, and whether or not he's still there when the kid gets out of rehab or not is none of our business." Phil chipped in, after all, he had a part to play here, and as far as the press were concerned he and Seth didn't see eye to eye at the moment.

"Now the mother's meeting is done, and Seth has finally shown his face, shall we move to our seats gents?" Paul, ever one for keeping up appearances, started attempting to move the group along. "Seth. Don't just stand there. You can catch up with your boyfriend later."

"Actually, he'll be catching up with you guys later." Alex appeared behind Seth as if by magic, taking his hand and pulling him away from Paul. "We have a sky box for tonight, but we'll be at the party later."

Without another word, Seth and Alex brushed passed the group, neither of them bothering to look back, but both certain that Paul would be barely able to contain his anger right about now.

"Thanks. I honestly thought he would kill me if I had to tell him I wasn't sitting with them. And in case you didn't hear, Roman doesn't seem to like you very much."


	6. Chapter 6

**Sorry about the delay, I've had this chapter finished for ages but just not had the time to post it. Also, I have no idea why I wrote this, so I'll apologies now for the lemon.**

* * *

**Chapter Six**

For the most part the fight was boring, and Seth spent most of the night Tweeting generic reaction Tweets to what was going on in the ring. Every so often he would reply to a fan, but then a sudden blast of inspiration hit. This whole relationship with Alex came about to wind up Paul, so why not really and truly wind up Paul.

Glancing across to Alex, he reached over the arm of the chair, grabbing at his hand. "You up for causing some more scandal? I mean, if I'm supposed to be going to rehab, we need people to keep talking about us. If we really want to play Paul at his own game."

"What did you have in mind?" Alex looked over at the musician, grinning slightly. This kid was brilliant, really media minded, he'd make a great manager or publicist if he ever decided to give up being a musician.

"Threesome! Or sex tape! You know, something really juicy, that the press will run with for a while." Seth stroked his thumb slowly over the back of Alex's hand.

"Threesome sex tape?" Alex muttered softly, glancing over his shoulder just in case the door had been left open when his security guard had left.

"Sounds good." Seth laughed softly, taking a swig of the water he had ordered earlier. "Problem though, I don't know anyone I trust enough to let in on this.

"I know someone." Alex grinned, holding up his own phone and taking a few pictures of the pair of them.

"I get the feeling you know everyone." Seth reached for the phone, sending a picture of himself settled in Alex's lap, in a Tweet. "How does the message We made our own fun tonight! The fight put us to sleep! sound?"

"Perfect. Send it!" Alex laughed, kissing the back of Seth's head and taking his phone back. "I don't quite know everyone, but I know enough people to know someone willing to help us out when we need it. Randy will love this. He gets off of people talking about him."

"I do what now Riley?" A slow drawl crept up behind them, and Seth almost leaped from Alex's lap in shock.

"You get off on being the center of attention Orton, don't deny it." Alex stood up, carefully tipping Seth off of him. "Seth, meet Randy, Randy, this is Seth."

Randy raked his eyes over the musician, nodding approvingly. "Nice. You've got taste Riley. Now, I heard my name mentioned in the same sentence as the word help. What do you want?"

"A threesome." Alex was blunt, so blunt that Seth practically choked on the mouthful of water he was swallowing down as he pulled his pants back on. "At least, a threesome for the papers. Seth wants to cause a scandal, you know, to piss his manager off even more than he already has. What do you say? Fancy some column inches?"

"Say what you like. As long as I get my photo in the paper with that piece of ass I don't give a crap." Randy smirked, sitting himself in Seth's chair, trapping the younger man's shirt under his arse. Slapping a hand down on his thigh, he grinned. "Come on then, take a seat. We may as well finish what you started."

Seth looked over at Alex, who nodded slightly, before sitting awkwardly in Randy's lap, wriggling as the man started groping at him. Carefully Seth batted his hands away, twisting his head to look up at the other man. "Not a real threesome, remember?"

"Shut your damn mouth kid. We're going to get friendly, Alex is going to film it, and then while you're away it's going to get leaked onto the internet." Randy nodded at Alex, who picked up his phone and pointed it at them.

Seth closed his eyes, nodding slowly as Randy's hand peeled away his jeans once again, the hand creeping slowly under the waistline of the musician's boxers. A low groan escaped his lips as Randy took a firm grasp of Seth's cock, skilfully stroking and teasing as he worked the younger man into a squirming, writhing frenzy.

"Please... Ran... Randy... I need to..."

"What? You need to what?" Randy teased, pulling his hand away for a few seconds, watching in delight as Seth thrust up, trying to find the friction that he was being denied.

"Use your words Sethy. Tell me what you need." Before returning his hand to the younger man's dick, Randy made eye contact with Alex, winking when he saw the third man's hard on pressing at the crotch of his pristine trousers.

"Cum... I gotta cum..." Seth whined, wriggling against Randy's crotch, the older man's erection grinding against his arse.

Without warning Randy stepped up his stroking, his other hand sneaking up under Seth's shirt, playing with his nipples, twisting and tweaking as he stroked Seth to orgasm, holding the younger man close as he settled back against Randy's chest, eyes fluttering open slowly.

"Well done. You did great babe." Randy absent mindedly stroked a hand through Seth's hair, playing with the blonde section as the younger man shifted his position to try and ease the feeling of Randy's hard on pressing against him.

"Want me to take care of you Ran?" Seth twisted his head slowly, blinking up at the other man. Randy nodded, not paying an awful lot of attention to the other man anymore, more concerned with making come to bed eyes at Alex across the room.

Seth slipped down to his knees in front of Randy, taking the man's jeans down to his ankles as he went. Seeing the older man was wearing no underwear, he whistled softly. "Commando? Someone was hoping they'd get some tonight."

"I was meeting you Al. I knew I'd get some from someone." Randy smirked, using Seth's hair to pull the younger man's mouth towards his cock. "Sort me out kid. That's all your fault you know."

Seth pouted, nipping playfully at the inside of Randy's thigh before taking his length into his mouth. Randy groaned loudly, fisting his hands into Seth's hair, using his head to guide the younger man in his actions. "Come join us Lex! You know you want to!"

Alex shook his head, the hand not holding the phone already buried in his pants, jerking himself off as he watched. "I'm good Ran, you and Sethy really are beautiful together."

"So you tell us every time sugar." Randy moaned, his hips thrusting up sharply, forcing his cock down Seth's throat so hard he gagged. "Shit!"

Feeling Randy let go of his hair, Seth pulled back, taking a minute or so to catch his breath, lazily using his hand to keep Randy hard until he was ready to finish off the older man.

As Randy blew his load down Seth's throat, Randy pulled out, smearing the last of his cum across the musician's face and taking several photos on his phone. "Are we done here? 'cause I'm sure you'd rather we left separately."

Alex nodded, turning off the camera. He could cut out Randy's last question later when he uploaded the video. "Thanks for this Ran. I'll let you know when the video is going up."

As Randy left, Seth pouted, using his t-shirt to scrub the cum from his face. "I need a clean shirt now, and I didn't bring one with me."

"I've got a spare in the limo. Don't worry. I'll have the driver bring it up to us in a minute." Alex held out his hand, helping Seth to his feet. "Are you sure you're okay with this? I mean, it's going to be crazy when we get back, and everyone will be watching us, waiting for you to slip up, especially with Randy involved."

"I can handle it. I know about Randy, his drug problems. Actually, I'm happy it's him you asked." Seth grinned, slipping off his cum soaked boxers and slipping into his jeans. "Any way. Who won the fight?"

"Bautista. Which means Paul's going to be spitting feathers at the party." Alex wound his arms around Seth, pulling him closer to keep him warm in the air conditioned room. "The driver will be here in a second with a shirt for you. Then we can hit up the party."

"When are we flying out? 'Cause I really don't want to do that interview tomorrow."

A knock on the door interrupted them, and they both turned to see their driver waiting, a dark t-shirt in his hand. "Oh, thanks Shawn. We'll be down in a minute or two, just waiting for the fans to clear out."

"Not a problem sirs. I'll bring the car around ready for you." The driver nodded, backing out of the room as Seth struggled into the shirt and kicked his sneakers back on.

"We should get going. We're already late enough to make a brilliant entrance. The press are going to be clamouring."

"Late? We're the focus of a media storm right now, we arrive whenever we want." Alex laughed, grabbing Seth's hand and pulling him from the room. "How did the last tweet go down?"

"The picture? About 200 retweets the last time I looked. The entertainment sites are going crazy for it!" Seth grinned to himself, AJ Lee was reposting the photo at every opportunity she got and calling the couple 'adorable' and 'too cute' every time she posted. "You never answered my question. When are we leaving?"

"The plane is ready. Just needs a destination." Alex glanced back at Seth with a laugh. "Jamaica you said right? We can be there before morning."

"Sounds good." The musician pulled Alex back to his level so they could walk out side by side, just in case any reporters were lingering in wait. Fortunately most had gone, and only the three or four die hards were still lingering, the rest had made a bee line for the verious places that were being used to host after parties.

After pausing for a few more photos, the couple bundled into the back of the limo and shot off into the night, ready to face the next barrage of press and questions at the party.


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter Seven**

As the limo pulled up in front of the building, Seth could already hear the music pounding inside. Some bass heavy club theme pumping through him as he allowed Alex to pull him from the car and once again into the blinding lights of camera bulbs.

"Shawn is going back to the hotel to collect our things. He'll be back in an hour." Alex muttered in Seth's ear discretely, leading him into the building as fast as he could.

"Thank God. I don't think I can take this for too long." Seth laughed half heartedly, eyes darting around the club at the people dancing and gossiping. He noticed more than a few people shooting looks in their direction, and while he knew they had brought it all on themseleves, he couldn't help but feel more than a little uncomfortable by all the attention.

"We should find Paul and Brock, congratulate them on a good fight."

"I'll leave the talking to you. I hardly saw any of the match." Seth allowed himself to be lead away once again, happy for the two of them to be swallowed up by the crowds of people his manager had packed into the bar.

By the time they had found the VIP area, Shawn had text to let them know he was outside and ready to go when they were. Apparantly traffic had been light and the hotel was more than happy to help locate the few bags the two men would need for thier trip.

"So, just a quick congratulations, and then we can be gone?" Seth squeezed Alex's hand looking for reassurance. The last thing he wanted was to be spending any more time around his manager and band mates than was completely necessary.

"Easy as that. Unless you want to tell them you're checking in to rehab tonight?" Alex glanced down at the smaller man, gently brushing a few loose strands of hair away from Seth's eyes.

"Seth! Alex! What a pleasent surprise!" Paul's voice boomed out across the VIP area as the small man stood up to greet them. It took Seth a couple of seconds to notice the cameraman in the corner, no doubt recording the aftermath of the fight for one of the entertainment networks. "I hope you're not leading my boy astray Riley?"

"Would I?" Apparantly Alex had also noticed the cameraman, and was more than willing to play along, because while Paul was forcing himself to be nice for the cameras, their get away would be easier. "We were just dropping by to congratulate Brock on a well fought match."

"Not staying? We've got plenty of food and drink. The party's only just getting started." Roman smirked, slapping a passing waitress on the arse to emphasise his point somewhat.

"Can't stay, got dinner plans. Need to make the most of my time with Seth before he checks in tomorrow." Alex smiled politely at the Samoan, before holding his hand out to Paul. "So, congratulations, enjoy your night, and I'll catch up with you soon."

Paul grudgingly shook the other man's hand, nodding his head slightly at Seth as he did so. "Thank you gentlemen. Seth, I'll be by your suite in the morning to make sure you're ready to go. Have a good night."

"And you." Seth was already halfway out of the room, shouting his reply back at the gathered men and leaving Alex to hurry in order to catch up to him. "Let's get out of here Lex. This city is depressing."

"Lead the way babe."

Alex hated having to wake Seth, he looked so peacefull while he was sleeping, but the plane had landed and the crew were getting ready to unload their bags.

"Seth. We're here." He gently shook the sleeping man, watching as he stretched and yawned. "You just need to stay awake long enough to get to the hotel then you can sleep as much as you want."

"Okay..." Seth mumbled softly, heaving himself up from the chair and shuffling down the plane. He hated flying, and was grateful that Alex had let him sleep for the whole flight. "How long was I asleep?"

"A couple of hours. Has anyone ever told you you're cute when you're asleep? I took pictures if you want proof."

"Has anyone ever told you you're creepy?"

Alex laughed, guiding Seth through the hanger area and out to where their car was waiting. He had made sure they would be landing early, and in a more secluded airport, just in case any local press were loitering in wait of celebrity arrivals. "I sent the bags ahead, and slipped a note in asking if the hotel could do some washing so you had something clean to change into when we arrived."

"You're amazing. Creepy, but amazing." Seth smiled tiredly, pulling out his phone to make a quick scan of some of the news sites and gossip blogs. "Well we made headlines last night!"

"What are they talking about?" Alex reached for the phone, laughing to himself as he looked over pages and pages of speculation about the two of them, and what they could possibly have gotten up to that lead to Seth leaving the arena in a different shirt to the one he arrived in.

"I bet Paul is livid. We've bumped the fight off the front pages, and it's not even mentioned in some of these articles." Almost right on cue Alex's cell phone buzzed, which reminded Seth that his personal phone was still in the limo after last night. "My phone..."

"Is perfectly safe, at my place in the Hamptons by now, waiting for you when you get back." Alex handed back the other phone, answering his own. "Alex Riley. Oh, hey Paul! Seth? No, haven't seen him since I left his hotel room last night. Gone? That's not like him." Seth looked up from his phone, raising his eyebrows at the ease with which Alex was lying. They should have known Paul would magic up Alex's number from somewhere. "He did say something about heading to the rehab facility early. Have you called them yet? Oh, he's not there? I don't know then."

Seth bit his tongue to stop himself from laughing, and hastily tapped out a quick tweet, showing it to Alex before hitting send.

"He's what? Give me a second..." Alex paused for a minute or two while Paul ranted down the phone so loud that Seth could hear a few select words from where he was. "All he's put is that he's changed his plans and is on his way to a different rehab place. What's so bad about that? I'm sure he won't. Listen, if he calls me, I'll ring you straight back. After all, we need to have Seth's best interests at heart here. Okay Paul. Speak soon. Bye."

As Alex clicked the phone shut, Seth roared with laughter. It was almost absurd that Paul would phone Alex acting like he gave a crap where Seth was. He just wanted that control back that he had held over Seth for the past year and a half.

"I think he's having a heart attack." Alex peered out the window as the car drew to a halt.

"Forget about him. Let's just chill out, enjoy ourselves, and cause some scandal with that video."

"I like the way you think kid. Got any other plans?"

"A few. But nothing I can't share later."

The driver held the door open for them, and the couple slipped out and darted into the hotel, Alex leading the way straight up to their rooms, where, as promised, their bags were waiting for them, and a small stack of freshly laundered clothes was waiting for them both.

Seeing his guitar case resting on the coffee table, Seth gaped in awe. "How did you know it was mine?" This guitar went every where with him, despite the fact that he had been relegated to playing bass for the band in favour of Roman's guitar skills.

"I've seen photos of you carrying it into hotels. Thought you might want it with you."

"You're the best." Seth grinned, lifting the lid open slowly, and freezing when he saw what was inside.


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter Eight**

"Seth? Babe? Are you okay?" Alex poked his head around the bedroom door. Seth had been shut away in there for the last three hours, ever since he had opened the guitar case and seen the instrument smashed to pieces inside. "Do you want something to eat? I'm ordering dinner."

"I'm fine." Seth mumbled quietly, curling up into the bed sheets and wrapping the covers around him tighter. His hands were shaking with rage, Paul, and the rest of the band, knew exactly what that guitar meant to him. He flinched slightly as Alex ran a hand gently over his back.

"Don't waste the day locked away in here. Come out to the balcony." He flipped the younger man onto his back, all but pulling the covers away from him. "I'm here if you want to talk you know. Get stuff off your chest."

"I know." The musician shuffled further into the covers, letting himself relax against Alex as the older man soothingly rubbed his back. "You go out, I'll be there in a minute."

Alex nodded slowly, taking care to shut the bedroom door behind him as he headed out on the balcony that overlooked the forest to the rear of their resort. This hotel wasn't one of his father's, he was too careful for that, only using the family name when on mainland America, after all, he was technically hiding a run away. Hearing the sliding door click shut, he turned, almost surprised to see that Seth had actually followed him, still holding on to the guitar case as though his life depended on it.

"My dad gave me this guitar when I was seven years old. He taught me how to play it, came to all my shows back home. This guitar was the only piece of him I had left, and Paul destroyed it, for revenge." Seth set the case down on the floor at his feet, staring blankly at the lid. "I _need_ to destroy _him_. He took away the last link I had to my dad, and I refuse to let him get away with it."

"I had an idea earlier, but, if you're not up for it don't worry." Alex pulled the chair beside him out for Seth to sit on. "I was thinking, I have some spare money that my father gave me to invest, prove my business sense or whatever. Anyway, I want to invest in a record company, or set up my own, I'm easy. And I want to sign you to the company. I've already got my lawyers looking in to it, and into how we can break your contract with Paul."

Seth just stared at him, almost in awe of how willing Alex was to lay his investment opportunity on the line for him. I... uh... wow! Thank you, for, everything."

"So you're okay with this? You don't mind me doing all this?"

"Of course not. I mean, it's your money, your choice. Are you sure you want to risk it on all me?"

"I wouldn't have started all this if I didn't have faith in you. We'll get through this. Trust me."

Seth merely smiled, taking Alex's hand in his. He could hardly believe that just over two days ago he had thought he would be stuck be Paul Heyman's scapegoat for the next four years of his life. But now? Things were changing, and he hadn't been this happy in a long, long time. And all thanks to Phil and Alex. If Phil hadn't arranged for Seth to meet Alex, he would be locked up in a rehab facility right about now, regretting ever meeting Dean Ambrose and Roman Reigns.

"Can we order some dinner? I'm starving!" Seth smiled coyly at Alex, reaching for the room service menu in Alex's pocket.

"Go ahead, they already know what I'm having so just add your choice to mine." Alex handed over the menu and the cordless phone, picking up the guitar case as he disappeared into the room. "Charge it to the room babe."

Seth nodded, scanning the menu quickly before ringing down to the kitchen to place his order, quickly dialling through to reception to pay off the charges with his credit card before hanging up and heading inside to find Alex.

The few weeks they spent in Jamaica ticked by slowly, and Seth was more than enjoying the stress free time he had to himself. Paul, Dean and Roman were ringing Alex every day to see if he had heard anything from Seth, and Alex was happily denying any knowledge of the younger man's whereabouts, while Seth sat in the background trying not to laugh out loud.

After the daily phone call, Alex sat his laptop on the coffee table in front of Seth, a few windows open at the same time. "So, the video has been edited, and ready to go up. I've text Randy and he says tomorrow would be a good time, apparently Dean and Roman have an interview with Conan tomorrow night, so if the video is out there by then, they'll probably be asked about it."

"Awesome!" Seth beamed, he already knew the video would interrupt the band's promotion of their new album, but releasing it on the same day as the other two had their first major interview on a big network show, well, that would be too sweet for words.

"Also, I've brought out some small time failing record label from Nashville, Hurricane Records. I'm keeping Shane Helms in to run the company, but I'll be very hands on in dealing with the most important acts, or rather, act." Alex called up some Word documents, sending them to print as he turned to look Seth dead in the eye. "My lawyer found a loophole in your contract with Paul, and you can break the contract, plus there's some other stuff he'll go into when he gets here. But long and short, we can have you signed with Hurricane Records before the plane lands in New York next week."

For a few minutes Seth just sat there, mouth agape, staring at Alex in pure disbelief. The last eighteen months had been Hell working for Paul, and it was taking a while for it to sink in that Alex had actually managed to find a way to get him out of there, away from the man that took delight in ruining lives.

"The question is, how comfortable are you with selling your band down the river..?"

Sighing heavily, Seth sat back in his seat. He had read over every inch of the contract Alex and his lawyer had placed in front of him, determined not to be tricked into anything this time. The lawyer had yet to explain what exactly this loophole was in his contract with Paul, but he did know that once Seth returned to the States, he and the lawyer would have to have a formal meeting with Heyman to discuss where Seth would be going from that point.

"So, are you ready for what's going to happen when we land?" Alex took Seth's hand in his, pulling him along the small sofa until they were sitting side by side. "The press will be waiting, that video has gone viral."

"I know, and I'm ready for this. I promise." Seth slithered closer still, the last few days had literally flipped everything he knew completely upside down. Alex flip flopped between caring friend and future boss, leaving Seth bewildered and lost. "Just promise me one thing, you won't let this come between us?"

"I wouldn't dream of it. I know I've been a bit all over the place lately, but once the contract is finalised, everything will go back to how it was before. We're a team. Nothing will change that."

"We'll be landing in New York soon, and air traffic control has been asked to pass on the message that press are lingering in hopes of someone turning up. Be prepared for a scramble when they spot you both." The flight attendant, Kelly, beamed at the pair of them, collecting up the empty glasses and stashing them in the cupboards, someone would board to clean up later on, for now her priority was getting the couple off the tarmac and into the terminal without hassel.

"Thank you Kelly. You're a star, as always." Alex grinned charmingly at her, draping his arm around Seth possessively. "Can you bring the guitar case through for me?"

"Why did you bring that back with us?" Seth watched the blonde disappear, before frowning up at Alex. "It's smashed, there's no fixing it."

"But it will throw Paul through a loop if you're photographed bringing it back with you, and playing it during your interview with AJ Lee on Entertainment Tonight."

"But it's broken, I can't play it!"

"I found an exact replica online, it's been delivered to my place in the Hamptons. I know it won't be your guitar, but... y'know..."

Without thinking, Seth pressed a kiss to Alex's lips, the most intimate moment that had passed between them since filimg the video. His father's guitar had meant the world to him, and held so many memories, while the replacement would always be just a replacement, it was the fact that Alex had gone to so much trouble to find it. The new guitar would always hold something with him because someone had given it to him as a gesture of caring, just as the old one had been.


	9. Chapter 9

******So this is it, the final chapter. I'm still debating a sequel, but I have too many plot bunnies for other fics floating around right now, so only time will tell. Enjoy. **

* * *

**Chapter Nine**

Holding hands, sunglasses down, Alex and Seth both stepped into the terminal building. They guessed they had about fifteen minutes of peace left before they passed through security out into the arrivals building.

"Here we go!" Seth muttered to himself under his breath, feeling Alex give his hand a reassuring squeeze. "Let the circus begin."

"You'll do fine. Just nod, smile and let them flash their cameras at us." Alex squeezed his hand once more, sliding both passports under the glass to border security. "Ready?"

Seth nodded, sliding his passport and travel documents into his scrappy messenger bag. "Let's go make news!"

Moving with the crowds, they pushed through the doors in to the arrivals building, the wall of press unlike anything they had encountered before they left the city. Men and women were shouting their names left and right, camera flashes so often they were almost blinding the two men. Clearly the video had made a greater impact than they had anticipated, especially with the additional mentions it had gotten during Dean and Roman's interview on Conan a few nights ago. Feeling Seth start to panic beside him, Alex charged forwards, pulling the younger man along with him in the direction of the exit, where he was sure Shawn would be waiting for them with the car.

Sure enough, Shawn was already there, taking their bags and loading them into the trunk while the two men settled into the backseat of the limo, Seth leaning heavily against Alex as they shielded their eyes from the constant flashing of camera bulbs.

"Just breath. Randy's meeting us at the house, he's printed out some of the articles about us and the video, just so we can read them properly." Alex wrapped his arms around Seth, whispering softly in his ear to try and keep him calm until they pulled away.

"Can I ring my friends when we get to the house? Not Dean and Roman, my friends from back home?"

"You don't have to ask babe. It's your home as well now. Unless you want to live on that bus again?" Alex nodded to Shawn as the driver slid into his seat, firing up the engine.

"Thank you. I just want them to know the truth about what happened with the contracts. They were so pissed at me about it."

"Invite them up. It would be better to talk to them face to face."

"I could... I mean, Jimmy's a journalist now, we could ask if he wants an interview..."

"Do you think he would? I'm cool with letting one of your friends interview us. We could offer him an exclusive print interview."

"I'll call him and ask when we get back. I'm not sure if he'll take it though, we didn't part on good terms." Seth smiled sadly as Alex pressed a kiss to the top of his head, and snuggled in closer to the other man.

"We don't have to pretend in here you know. There's no cameras to sell us out." Alex muttered softly, not completely uncomfortable in the situation, but not willing to take advantage of the other man when he was clearly still shaken by the onslaught they had faced at the airport.

"I know. But this is comfortable. And it feels safe."

* * *

"Jimmy, it's Seth. I know I'm probably the last person you want to talk to, but, uh... ring me back... it's important." After having three calls diverted to answerphone, Seth caved in and left a message for his old friend, hoping Jimmy would be rational enough to at least hear him out before turning him down flat.

"Answerphone again?" Alex passed Seth a glass of wine, settling into the sofa beside him. "Have you watched the interview tapes yet?"

"I've seen Conan. It's brilliant, I thought Roman's head was going to explode when the tape was brought up." Seth laughed, sipping at his glass carefully. After six weeks of no alcohol, he wasn't sure how his system would handle even one glass. "What's next? I mean, if Jimmy says no to the interview, we don't have a back up for a magazine exclusive."

"We'll find someone babe. Don't worry." Alex topped up his own glass, flicking on the TV. MTV was his first stop, and finding nothing of interest he moved on quickly, stopping on E! for a few seconds before skipping to the Discovery channel. "Shark Week alright with you?"

"Yeah, whatever." As much as Seth tried to focus on the screen, he found his mind wondering to any journalist or report who would be interested in an exclusive interview, just in case Jimmy said no to him.

"Stop worrying. We still have the interview with AJ, everything will be okay, your side of the story _will_ be heard." Alex draped an arm around Seth's shoulder loosely, pulling him in closer and kissing the side of his head. "Have you called Bo and Corey?"

"Answerphone as well, I left messages." While Seth wasn't surprised that they hadn't called back yet, he was more than a little upset by the situation. Sure things had been bad the last time he saw them, but he thought they had sorted things out when the press tour stopped in Nashville a couple of months ago.

"They'll call back. If you were all as close as you said, they won't leave things badly." Alex took the wine glass from the other man, setting it aside carefully. "But, we need to talk. Properly, before we do anything else."

"Talk? What do we need to talk about?" Seth mumbled, trying to reach for his glass.

"We need to talk about this relationship, if there is one, for real." Alex took Seth firmly by the shoulders, holding the younger man squarely in place. "In the limo, you said you felt safe with me. I know this started out as an arrangement, but, I want more, I've always wanted more."

"You... you asked Phil to give me your number." Seth muttered softly, remembering back to the first time they had met, back at the hotel in New York. "You were interested in me before you even knew me."

"I know." Alex grinned slightly. Seth had caught his attention the very first time he had met him, at the Country Music benefit show in Nashville not long after The Shield had signed with Paul. "You were at that benefit in Nashville, the first time I met you properly. After that I spent months trying to find you, get my number to you, but Phil kept knocking me back, telling me to stay away. He never told me why though."

"I was a mess. Right after we had signed our contract, Dean and Roman told me what had really happened the night we signed, I had something of a breakdown." Seth shifted himself closer to Alex, knocking the older man's hands from his shoulders and catching his hands carefully. "I overdosed the night of the benefit, deliberately. Ended up in hospital for a month. Delayed the album launch, set the whole band back by two months before we'd even got started. That's why Paul hates my guts."

"And why Phil kept telling me to drop it." Alex nodded slowly, this made a few things a lot clearer, especially why Paul was less than interested in Seth in comparison to the others. "But you still did what he wanted."

"He hushed up the overdose, didn't tell my mother, kept it from the press. Said he was doing me a favour, that no one would trust me again if they found out I tried to kill myself." The musician mumbled quietly, ashamed that he had allowed himself to be taken in by his manager's manipulations. "And if I wanted him to keep everything quiet and away from the papers, I had to do whatever he told me to. So I did, because I was scared my mother would find out."

Seeing Seth blinking back tears, Alex edged himself closer, gently stroking a thumb across his cheek. "It's okay, you know. Everybody has things they regret doing. Paul made you hide it, lock it away like a dirty little secret, and he used it against you. But you can move on from this, don't let one mistake ruin everything."

"I want to tell people, tell the world what Paul Heyman is really like." Seth leaned into the touch, nuzzling his cheek against Alex's hand, enjoying the moment of closeness between them. "And I want you beside me when I do. I want you there for real, not just for the cameras."

"I'll be there." Alex pulled Seth into a tight, warm embrace, feeling a weight lift off his shouders now that he had a straight answer about their relationship away from the public eye. Seth sharing such a huge part of his past came as a shock, but it showed a great deal of trust, especially for someone that had suffered through the past year and half having to deal with so many untrustworthy people.

The quiet, intimate moment was ruined by the chiming of Seth's cellphone, Jimmy's number flashing up on the screen. The musician snatched up the phone, disappearing into the kitchen to take the call.

"Jimmy! I... uh... I wasn't expecting you to call back! So soon!" He perched up on the couter top, picking at the grapes in the basket beside him. "Look, I know I apologised last time I was home, and I mean it from the bottom of my heart, really I do, and I know you probably still don't think a lot of me right now, but... Alex and I, we want to do an interview, exclusive interview, and we want you to do it for us!"

He paused, waiting for Jimmy to ponder over his options, listening to the other man muttering to someone on the other end of the line, tapping at computers key, and shuffling papers. "You don't have to decide now... I mean, if you've got other plans I understand."

"Give me two days, I'll come up to you. Email me your address."

"Thank you! Thank you so much!" Seth practically beamed. He honestly hadn't expected Jimmy to agree to talk to him so readily.

"The others want to come up as well. They said you called them, they want to come visit you."

"Really? They want to come? That's great!" Seth paused for a second, realising he sounded more than a little over excited. "I mean, great. I can't wait to see you all again!"

* * *

Two days later, Seth was pacing the sitting room nervously, chewing on his fingernails as he waited for his friends to arrive. While it had only been about two months since he had last seen them, he was nervous, just in case they had decided not to forgive him after all. What if they had changed their minds and decided not to come?

"Calm down. They'll be here." Alex took Seth firmly by the shoulders and guided him into a chair. "Relax. You want something to eat?"

"I'm fine. Just nervous." Seth mumbled softly. Hearing a car pull up in the driveway, he jumped to his feet, all but running to the door to let his friends in. "You made it!"

"We said we'd be here mate." Jimmy laughed, clapping Seth on the shoulder as he wandered into the hallway. "Woah! Nice place!" He looked around in awe, dropping his bag to his feet.

"It's Alex's place. I'm just staying here 'til it's safe to go home." Seth shrugged, reaching out to take the bags from Bo and Corey. "I'll show you to the spare rooms, you can fight over them."

"Uh... yeah, about your place." Bo jerked his bag out of Seth's reach, he knew all too well that the other man was feeling guilty, and was being more heplful than was necessary to try and make up for what had happened between them all. "Someone somewhere must hate you real bad mate."

"Why? Please tell me it hasn't been broken into! I can't be dealing with shit like that now!" Seth grabbed Corey's bag before he could be stopped, and picked up Jimmy's as he passed him on the way to the stairs. "Rooms are this way."

Bo and Corey exchanged a look, following Seth up to the bedrooms. "Not a break in... more like... a fire." They watched as Seth stopped, glancing over his shoulder. "It's bad, really bad."

"Right. Um. Thanks for... uh... thanks for letting me know." He pushed open a couple of doors, showing them the rooms. "The bathrooms are through the back of your rooms. I'll let you guys get cleaned up. Alex made pasta for dinner." Without another word, Seth dropped the two bags he was carrying and disappeared down the stairs.

"He took that well." Jimmy muttered, grabbing his stuff and disappearing into the nearest room. "Better than I thought he would."

"He hated that place. Spent more time on my sofa than he did there." Corey picked up his own bag, waiting for Bo to pick a room first.

"That's cos he had a crush on you dude." Bo laughed, slapping his friend on the back and shutting himself in his room, after the flight and then all the chaos with the car hire company, a hot shower was more than welcome.

Jimmy, already showered and changed, was stretched out on his bed, staring up at the ceiling as he tried to wrap his head around how he was going to approach this interview. He knew his position at the magazine was slipping due to the fact that he wasn't comfortable with the gossip magazine industry, but this could very well make his career. An exclusive interview was hard enough to come by, even for a seasoned veteran, but Jimmy was a rookie compared to the others in his office, and Seth had gone to him offering up the exclusive. And now he was stuck, with no idea what to ask, or even how to start the article.

"Jim! You decent?" Corey creaked the door open slowly, slipping into the room. "Listen, Bo just said something, and, well, I gotta ask. Did Seth ever have a crush on me?"

Jimmy laughed, sitting up slowly. "Only ever since the day he met you. Even when he and I were together... it was always you he wanted."

"I'm... sorry..?" Corey shifted a little, slightly uncomfortable in Jimmy's presence now that he knew the truth.

"Don't be. I asked him out knowing how he felt about you. He didn't have to say yes." Jimmy shrugged, hefting himself up off the bed. "We should go find Seth."

"And you're going to what? Pretend like this doesn't bother you?" Corey trailed after the other man as they headed down the stairs. "Cause I know it does. I know you still love him."

"It's not an issue. Seth asked me here as a friend, so I'm here, as a friend. There's nothing left to say. He's with Alex, he's happy, and that's that. Just drop it." Jimmy pulled himself up off the bed, heading for the bedroom door. "Let's go find them, I'm starving."

Corey, knowing better than to press the issue, merely nodded, following Jimmy out into the stairwell. The smell of takeaway drifted up the stairs from the kitchen, and the two men paused only to knock on Bo's door and wait for their friend to join them.

Halfway to the top of the stairs they heard the sound of the back door being kicked in. Halfway down the stairs they heard the sharp crack of the gun, twice, three times before the slamming of the door left the house frozen in silence...


End file.
